Several federal agencies made significant changes to their rules and procedures implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which requires agencies to consider certain environmental effects of proposed actions before making a decision. See our NEPA overview.
The Department of the Interior, Department of Energy, Department of Defense, Department of Transportation, Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission published interim final rules amending their NEPA rules on July 3. In several cases, agencies withdrew in whole or in large part their existing NEPA regulations, and announced they will now use non-binding guidance.
In general, these new procedures reflect CEQ’s April 8 draft template, including potentially excluding more projects from NEPA review, limiting opportunities for public comment, making the publication of draft environmental impact statements optional, limiting the scope and types of environmental effects agencies are required to analyze, and encouraging the use of accelerated “emergency” procedures for certain projects. The new procedures also eliminate any mention of environmental justice, and bar agencies from conducting new research to complete their reviews.
In all cases, except FERC, these changes are effective immediately:
- US Department of Agriculture published an interim final rule effective immediately on July 3, 2025 modifying and partially rescinding their NEPA rules. The agency’s updated NEPA procedures are included in the interim final rule. On April 3, 2026, the Department of the Agriculture published a final rule, adopting its interim final rule with minimal changes.
- Department of Commerce announced new NEPA procedures under DAO 216-6 for bureaus that perform NEPA reviews. Commerce is not accepting comments on these changes. Separately, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) updated its NEPA procedures, effective June 30, 2025, and proposed changes to its list of categorical exclusions (CEs).
- Department of Defense announced the Army, Navy, and Air Force are rescinding their NEPA rules, effective immediately. Those rules were replaced by Department-wide guidance (DoD NEPA Procedures). The Army Corps of Engineers published a separate interim final rule partially rescinding its NEPA rules effective immediately on July 3, 2025. The Corps then published a second interim final rule with new NEPA rules, also effective immediately.
- Department of Energy (DOE) published an interim final rule effective immediately on July 3, 2025 partially rescinding their NEPA rules. DOE is now relying on agency guidance to implement NEPA. Updated DOE NEPA Policy and Compliance here.
- Department of the Interior published an interim final rule (July 3, 2025) partially rescinding their NEPA rules and shifting most of its NEPA implementation procedures to a guidance document. On February 24, 2026, the Department of the Interior published a final rule, adopting its interim final rule with minimal changes.
- Department of Transportation published an interim final rule effective immediately on July 3, 2025 partially rescinding NEPA rules that apply to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), and Federal Transit Administration (FTA). DOT separately issued new NEPA procedures under DOT Order 5610.1C. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published separate NEPA procedures under Order 1050.1G.
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) published a final rule effective August 18, 2025 to revise its NEPA rules. FERC separately issued a staff manual outlining its revised NEPA procedures.